


We Travel Together

by loopyzoop



Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel) - All Media Types
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, Alternate Universe - No Powers, College, Fluff, Getting Together, M/M, SafeWalk AU, SteveTony, Stony - Freeform, as if that's a thing lmfao, inspired by my uni, steve is a nice art history major, tony is a big dork
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-05-24
Updated: 2018-05-24
Packaged: 2019-05-13 04:53:47
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,015
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14742350
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/loopyzoop/pseuds/loopyzoop
Summary: Tony does not and never will need help getting to his car on the other side of campus, but a very cute blond boy at the SafeWalk table changes his mind. College!AU, No Powers!AU.





	We Travel Together

**Author's Note:**

> So I randomly thought this up at school when I was bored. I understand that the actual SafeWalk program uses co-ed pairs to walk people to their car/dorm/whatever but 1) my school doesn't because people rarely use it and b) I NEEDED IT TO WORK. Also, SafeWalk is a great program, and I'm glad it exists, and I totally think Steve would be a part of it. That is all, I hope you all enjoy.

Here’s the thing: Tony didn’t need help to get to his car. Sure, his Audi was currently sitting in a parking garage half a mile across campus, and sure, it was 9:55 at night, but he was perfectly capable of handling himself.

Really, the SafeWalk program at the university was kind of a joke. The campus was minuscule when compared to other schools in the state, and the college town that bordered it to the south was dull and nondescript. To the north there were miles of fields and cattle farms, which weren’t exactly harmful (unless you considered being bored to death a threat), and it seemed that absolutely no one had a night class on Tuesdays. That had been precisely _why_ Tony chose Tuesdays for his extra time in the basement engineering lab. He liked the quiet.

So, it was established. Tony did not need help, and he never would. To his credit, he was actually kind of a badass. The last thing he required was a yellow vested nerd from the SafeWalk table to help him on his way, and yet… he was walking straight towards them.

This was because on that particular Tuesday night, the nerd-on-duty was not the freckle-faced first year he was used to seeing. No, that boy had been replaced by someone else. Someone who, to put it frankly, was fucking _gorgeous_. The student behind the table was blond and blue-eyed, with muscles that were apparent even under his white college hoodie. He was tall and big and perfect, and Tony had to physically stop himself from letting his mouth fall open. The nerd slash mystery man slash absolute dreamboat sat behind the table, a vest draped over his chair and one leg resting on the other while his foot tapped against the concrete. He thumbed through a book — something old, wrinkled, and by Steinbeck, which Tony found very interesting.

These circumstances explained why Tony approached the rickety foldout table, taking a deep breath and clutching at his backpack strap while something akin to nerves bundled in his stomach. Tony was right in front of him when the blond looked up, sticking a bookmark in his novel and setting it aside.

“How can I help you?”

Tony cleared his throat. “Ah, I need you to walk me. Safely. You know, SafeWalk. The name seems self explanatory.” _Fucking smooth._

“Sure, no problem,” the other man smiled, slipping his arms into the disgustingly bright vest. “My name’s Steve, where are we headed?”

“My car’s…” Tony paused when Steve stood up, suddenly aware of how tall this guy really was. He towered over Tony by almost a foot and made him vaguely uncomfortable. “Um, the parking garage… behind the library. And I’m Tony.”

“Great,” Steve said, giving another beaming, professional smile. He flipped over a small handwritten sign on the front of the table that read _Be Back Soon!_ in neat print, and they were off.

The two fell into an easy pace towards the front entrance of the university. They didn’t speak, and the silence continually grew more awkward as the moved down the hall, pushing Tony to think desperately of something to say. There was no way he was getting walked to his car for nothing, and finally he choked out, “So.”

“So?” Steve asked.

“How’d you end up with such a sweet gig? Walking around at night in the cold is actually a dream of mine, so I’m really just curious.”

Steve snorted and shook his head. “I signed up.”

“So you actually do this for fun?” Tony pulled a face. _What kind of masochist…_

“Sure. I just wanted to do something to help out around here. I like our school. Plus, it looks good on the student development record.”

Tony nodded, mulling this over for a moment. There was something so overtly good about this guy, he seemed like the type of person who helped old ladies across the street, who carried groceries for busy mothers, who… walked people to their cars at night. He was the all-American boy, and this made a flush creep up Tony’s neck unexpectedly. “It must get boring though,” he said. “What do you even _do_ here all night?”

Steve shrugged. “Mostly I read—,”

“Steinbeck?”

“Er, yeah, at the moment. I think he’s interesting.”

There was a pause before Tony spoke again. “Would you like me to tell you about the rabbits?” he asked, and at Steve’s sideways look, continued, “We’re like George and Lennie. I mean, obviously I’m George. I’m the genius and you’re my muscle that protects me in the night because, although I loathe to admit this out loud, I’m kind of small. But you’re not. And you can tend the rabbits.”

Steve was still giving Tony a befuddled look, but a hint of a smile pulled at the corner of his mouth. “Did you just call me stupid?”

“Psh, I didn’t say we were a perfect parallel,” Tony waved this off. “I haven’t really decided yet if you’re stupid.”

The pair were across the main road, and had begun to climb the hill that led to the library. The ginormous building filled the dark skyline, and the rush of traffic in the distance could be heard over the hum of streetlights. Steve seemed to be stunned into silence for a moment, and Tony had to concede that his mile-a-minute conversations often had that effect on people.

“So you’re a genius,” Steve finally broke the quiet.

“You could say that.”

“Major?”

“Canadian Studies.”

Steve sputtered, “What?”

“I’m kidding. Electrical engineering. What about you? Wait, no, let me guess…” Tony put his fingers to his temples and feigned a supernatural force. “English? No, wait… Phys Ed!”

Steve shook his head. “I’m actually an art history major,” he replied, and a blush filled his cheeks.

“Wow. Didn’t peg that one. Okay.”

  
“Yeah, people usually don’t,” Steve laughed, and he was looking down at the ground. He suddenly looked a lot smaller than Tony recalled. “So electrical engineering… must be tough, huh?”

Tony gave a noncommittal shrug. “I’ve been doing it my whole life. It’s natural. My dad…” he paused, unsure. “He’s really into his tech. He’s always tinkering with something. I’ve just been watching him.”

Steve nodded. “I guess I always had a thing for art. I used to draw these big maps of cities, mostly New York… I loved drawing buildings, animals, anything that I thought was important. I took art history so maybe I could teach one day, if I’m lucky.”

“I draw some mean stick figures. Maybe I could be your first student,” Tony grinned, enjoying himself. It seemed the quiet companionship of the night pushed their conversation forward, and it was warm, easy.

The blond smiled back at this, and Tony’s stomach twisted in reaction. They were past the library, and then they would be at the parking garage, and then they would be at Tony’s car. He was running out of time to make whatever this was count, and God dammit, he was going to make it count. There was no way in hell he would accept walking clear across campus with a dork (mind you, a cute dork) in a yellow reflector vest without even attempting to get a phone number out of it. Tony’s brain was moving impossibly fast and he formed and destroyed plans of action as the seconds passed. It was always possible that this guy wasn’t even into dudes, but that was the risk Tony took in these situations. He had stopped giving a fuck about that long ago.

They rounded the corner that became the smooth driveway into the parkade, entering the first level. Tony’s sleek black Audi was the only car left, dulled by the faint orange glow of the garage lights.

“Alright, I’m confused,” Steve admitted.

Tony frowned slightly. “Confused about what, Lennie?”

“Shut up. I’m confused because you’re clearly smart, you’re clearly rich,” he nodded to the vehicle in front of them, “and you don’t seem afraid of much. You just… don’t seem like the type of guy who would want me to walk you here,” he picked at a string hanging off his too-small vest.

Tony almost laughed, and a certain kind of satisfaction filled him. Somehow he had been presented with just the opportunity he needed without even having to try.

“Here’s the thing,” Tony began, and the confidence in his voice did not match his sweaty palms and knotted stomach. “I am not the kind of guy who would want you to walk me here. I don’t know if you noticed, but the only company I’ve had on campus this evening has been you and maybe a couple of rogue squirrels, I don’t see much to be scared of. Also, I kind of think you guys look like dweebs, no offence. Well, some offence. But you’re super hot and this walk is super boring and I kind of sort of super want your number too.”

Steve was gobsmacked, and he blinked in bewilderment. As the pause grew longer, Tony began to wonder if he had just made a horrible mistake and was about to get decked in the side of the head… not that that was unfamiliar to him by any means.

“My number,” Steve repeated as the gears in his mind turned. “You want my number.”

“I do, well I did, but now you’re starting to look like you might murder me in this parking garage and I’m starting to wonder if this whole SafeWalk thing is a sham and it’s really an elaborate—,”

“Yes.”

“Yes?”

“Yes,” Steve’s lips curved into a small, satisfied grin. “Give me your phone.”

Tony’s heart leapt as he handed over his cellphone. His fingers brushed against the other man’s, sending a jolt through his body. The situation had gone better than he could have imagined, and it was far from getting decked and laying in a puddle of his own blood and self-pity.

Steve handed back his phone. “There.”

“Thanks,” Tony smiled nervously, swinging his bag higher on his shoulder and fishing his keys from his pocket. “Listen, I should uh, get going…”

Steve blinked. “Right, yeah,” he nodded, “I should probably get back to my table.”

Tony took a deep breath. He had already pushed it enough for one night, he was well aware. But there were times — times like these — when he just couldn’t stop himself. “This is going to sound crazy, I know the extent of our relationship has been a ten minute walk to my car, but can I k—,”

His words were suddenly cut off, and Steve had closed the few feet between them without hesitation and pressed their lips together. Tony floundered for a moment, lost in his own shock, before coming to his senses and placing his hands on Steve’s waist. Steve tasted like cherries, and gum, and something else. His heart was thundering and he could hear his blood rushing in his ears. For a moment, Tony wondered if he would pass out, and as his lips worked against Steve’s he was able to slowly comprehend what had happened. After a couple of blissful minutes he slowly pulled away.

“Wow,” Tony breathed.

“Sorry,” Steve scratched at the back of his neck anxiously. “I didn’t mean to… I mean, I don’t usually… I, uh…” he trailed off.

“Don’t be sorry,” Tony laughed, still trying to regain his composure. “It was… wow. I really should get going though,” he glanced at his car regretfully.

“Yeah, of course,” Steve met Tony’s eyes, and his shoulders sagged in relief at Tony’s hopeful eyes. “So… I should expect a call?”

Tony smiled, unlocking his car. The sound echoed in the empty building. “Yes, Steve, you should expect a call. And thank you for making sure I got here alive, you’re my hero.”

Steve snorted, shaking his head and turning to leave.

“Oh, and Steve?” Tony called after him.

“Yeah?”

“This better not be a fake number,” he said, waving his phone in the air with a wink. “After all, I know where you work.”


End file.
